Just So Stories

Rudyard Kipling

Description

IN the sea, once upon a time, O my Best Beloved, there was a Whale, and he ate fishes. He ate the starfish and the garfish, and the crab and the dab, and the plaice and the dace, and the skate and his mate, and the mackereel and the pickereel, and the really truly twirly-whirly eel. All the fishes he could find in all the sea he ate with his mouth-so! Till at last there was only one small fish left in all the sea, and he was a small 'Stute Fish, and he swam a little behind the Whale's right ear, so as to be out of harm's way. Then the Whale stood up on his tail and said, 'I'm hungry.' And the small 'Stute Fish said in a small 'stute voice, 'Noble and generous Cetacean, have you ever tasted Man?

Informations

• Publié par: Pub One Info
• Date de parution: 27 septembre 2010
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9782819922674
• Langue: English

Extrait

HOW THE WHALE GOT HIS THROAT
IN the sea, once upon a time, O my Best Beloved, there was aWhale, and he ate fishes. He ate the starfish and the garfish, andthe crab and the dab, and the plaice and the dace, and the skateand his mate, and the mackereel and the pickereel, and the reallytruly twirly–whirly eel. All the fishes he could find in all thesea he ate with his mouth—so! Till at last there was only one smallfish left in all the sea, and he was a small 'Stute Fish, and heswam a little behind the Whale's right ear, so as to be out ofharm's way. Then the Whale stood up on his tail and said, 'I'mhungry.' And the small 'Stute Fish said in a small 'stute voice,'Noble and generous Cetacean, have you ever tasted Man?'
'No,' said the Whale. 'What is it like?'
'Nice,' said the small 'Stute Fish. 'Nice but nubbly.'
'Then fetch me some,' said the Whale, and he made the sea frothup with his tail.
'One at a time is enough,' said the 'Stute Fish. 'If you swim tolatitude Fifty North, longitude Forty West (that is magic), youwill find, sitting on a raft, in the middle ofthe sea, with nothing on but a pair of blue canvas breeches, a pairof suspenders (you must not forget the suspenders, BestBeloved), and a jack–knife, one ship–wrecked Mariner, who, it isonly fair to tell you, is a man ofinfinite–resource–and–sagacity.'
So the Whale swam and swam to latitude Fifty North, longitudeForty West, as fast as he could swim, and on a raft, in the middle of the sea, with nothing to wearexcept a pair of blue canvas breeches, a pair of suspenders (youmust particularly remember the suspenders, Best Beloved), and a jack–knife, he found one single, solitaryshipwrecked Mariner, trailing his toes in the water. (He had hismummy's leave to paddle, or else he would never have done it,because he was a man of infinite–resource–and–sagacity.)
Then the Whale opened his mouth back and back and back till itnearly touched his tail, and he swallowed the shipwrecked Mariner,and the raft he was sitting on, and his blue canvas breeches, andthe suspenders (which you must not forget), and the jack–knife—He swallowed them all down into his warm, dark,inside cup–boards, and then he smacked his lips—so, and turnedround three times on his tail.
But as soon as the Mariner, who was a man ofinfinite–resource–and–sagacity, found himself truly inside theWhale's warm, dark, inside cup–boards, he stumped and he jumped andhe thumped and he bumped, and he pranced and he danced, and hebanged and he clanged, and he hit and he bit, and he leaped and hecreeped, and he prowled and he howled, and he hopped and hedropped, and he cried and he sighed, and he crawled and he bawled,and he stepped and he lepped, and he danced hornpipes where heshouldn't, and the Whale felt most unhappy indeed. ( Have you forgotten the suspenders?)
So he said to the 'Stute Fish, 'This man is very nubbly, andbesides he is making me hiccough. What shall I do?'
'Tell him to come out,' said the 'Stute Fish.
So the Whale called down his own throat to the shipwreckedMariner, 'Come out and behave yourself. I've got thehiccoughs.'
'Nay, nay!' said the Mariner. 'Not so, but far otherwise. Takeme to my natal–shore and the white–cliffs–of–Albion, and I'll thinkabout it.' And he began to dance more than ever.
'You had better take him home,' said the 'Stute Fish to theWhale. 'I ought to have warned you that he is a man ofinfinite–resource–and–sagacity.'
So the Whale swam and swam and swam, with both flippers and histail, as hard as he could for the hiccoughs; and at last he saw theMariner's natal–shore and the white–cliffs–of–Albion, and he rushedhalf–way up the beach, and opened his mouth wide and wide and wide,and said, 'Change here for Winchester, Ashuelot, Nashua, Keene, andstations on the Fitch burg Road;' and just as he said'Fitch' the Mariner walked out of his mouth. But while the Whalehad been swimming, the Mariner, who was indeed a person ofinfinite–resource–and–sagacity, had taken his jack–knife and cut upthe raft into a little square grating all running criss–cross, andhe had tied it firm with his suspenders ( now , you know whyyou were not to forget the suspenders!), and he dragged thatgrating good and tight into the Whale's throat, and there it stuck!Then he recited the following Sloka , which, as you havenot heard it, I will now proceed to relate—
By means of a grating I have stopped your ating.
For the Mariner he was also an Hi–ber–ni–an. And he stepped outon the shingle, and went home to his mother, who had given himleave to trail his toes in the water; and he married and livedhappily ever afterward. So did the Whale. But from that day on, thegrating in his throat, which he could neither cough up nor swallowdown, prevented him eating anything except very, very small fish;and that is the reason why whales nowadays never eat men or boys orlittle girls.
The small 'Stute Fish went and hid himself in the mud under theDoor–sills of the Equator. He was afraid that the Whale might beangry with him.
The Sailor took the jack–knife home. He was wearing the bluecanvas breeches when he walked out on the shingle. The suspenderswere left behind, you see, to tie the grating with; and that is theend of that tale.
WHEN the cabin port–holes are dark andgreen Because of the seas outside; When the ship goes wop (with a wiggle between) And the steward falls into the soup–tureen, And the trunks begin to slide; When Nursey lies on the floor in a heap, And Mummy tells you to let her sleep, And you aren't waked or washed or dressed, Why, then you will know (if you haven't guessed) You're 'Fifty North and Forty West!'
HOW THE CAMEL GOT HIS HUMP
NOW this is the next tale, and it tells how the Camel got hisbig hump.
In the beginning of years, when the world was so new and all,and the Animals were just beginning to work for Man, there was aCamel, and he lived in the middle of a Howling Desert because hedid not want to work; and besides, he was a Howler himself. So heate sticks and thorns and tamarisks and milkweed and prickles, most'scruciating idle; and when anybody spoke to him he said 'Humph!'Just 'Humph!' and no more.
Presently the Horse came to him on Monday morning, with a saddleon his back and a bit in his mouth, and said, 'Camel, O Camel, comeout and trot like the rest of us.'
'Humph!' said the Camel; and the Horse went away and told theMan.
Presently the Dog came to him, with a stick in his mouth, andsaid, 'Camel, O Camel, come and fetch and carry like the rest ofus.'
'Humph!' said the Camel; and the Dog went away and told theMan.
Presently the Ox came to him, with the yoke on his neck andsaid, 'Camel, O Camel, come and plough like the rest of us.'
'Humph!' said the Camel; and the Ox went away and told theMan.
At the end of the day the Man called the Horse and the Dog andthe Ox together, and said, 'Three, O Three, I'm very sorry for you(with the world so new–and–all); but that Humph–thing in the Desertcan't work, or he would have been here by now, so I am going toleave him alone, and you must work double–time to make up forit.'
That made the Three very angry (with the world so new–and–all),and they held a palaver, and an indaba , and a punchayet , and a pow–wow on the edge of the Desert; andthe Camel came chewing on milkweed most 'scruciating idle,and laughed at them. Then he said 'Humph!' and went away again.
Presently there came along the Djinn in charge of All Deserts,rolling in a cloud of dust (Djinns always travel that way becauseit is Magic), and he stopped to palaver and pow–pow with theThree.
'Djinn of All Deserts,' said the Horse, 'is it right for any oneto be idle, with the world so new–and–all?'
'Certainly not,' said the Djinn.
'Well,' said the Horse, 'there's a thing in the middle of yourHowling Desert (and he's a Howler himself) with a long neck andlong legs, and he hasn't done a stroke of work since Mondaymorning. He won't trot.'
'Whew!' said the Djinn, whistling, 'that's my Camel, for all thegold in Arabia! What does he say about it?'
'He says "Humph!"' said the Dog; 'and he won't fetch andcarry.'
'Does he say anything else?'
'Only "Humph!"; and he won't plough,' said the Ox.
'Very good,' said the Djinn. 'I'll humph him if you will kindlywait a minute.'
The Djinn rolled himself up in his dust–cloak, and took abearing across the desert, and found the Camel most 'scruciatinglyidle, looking at his own reflection in a pool of water.
'My long and bubbling friend,' said the Djinn, 'what's this Ihear of your doing no work, with the world so new–and–all?'
'Humph!' said the Camel.
The Djinn sat down, with his chin in his hand, and began tothink a Great Magic, while the Camel looked at his own reflectionin the pool of water.
'You've given the Three extra work ever since Monday morning,all on account of your 'scruciating idleness,' said the Djinn; andhe went on thinking Magics, with his chin in his hand.
'Humph!' said the Camel.
'I shouldn't say that again if I were you,' said the Djinn; youmight say it once too often. Bubbles, I want you to work.'
And the Camel said 'Humph!' again; but no sooner had he said itthan he saw his back, that he was so proud of, puffing up andpuffing up into a great big lolloping humph.
'Do you see that?' said the Djinn. 'That's your very own humphthat you've brought upon your very own self by not working. To–dayis Thursday, and you've done no work since Monday, when the workbegan. Now you are going to work.'
'How can I,' said the Camel, 'with this humph on my back?'
'That's made a–purpose,' said the Djinn, 'all because you missedthose three days. You will be able to work now for three dayswithout eating, because you can live on your humph; and don't youever say I never did anything for you. Come out of the Desert andgo to the Three, and behave. Humph yourself!'
And the Camel humphed himself, humph and all, and went away tojoin the Three. And from that day to this the Camel always wears ahumph (we call it 'hump' now, not to hurt his f